Estar, Ser, and Subject Pronouns Subject Pronouns Singular yo 1 ta you The familiar singular form ta is used with friends and familys age varies from country to country él he ella she usted you Usted It is used when meeting people for the first time, in business situations, and with a person you might not know well. Its abbreviation is Ud. more formal than ta. 14 Plural nosotros = we vosotros you The familiar plural form vosotros is used only in Spain. ellos they The masculine plural form ellos refers to a group of males or to a group that includes both males and females. ellas they The feminine plural form ellas refers to a group that includes only females. ustedes you The plural form ustedes is used more than one person. Latin Americans use ustedes for the plural of both ta and Ud. (since vosotros is used only in Spain). Its abbreviation is Uds. to addres Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Click here for terms of use,Estar, Ser, and Subject Pronouns 15 There is no subject pronoun it in panish. EI and ella refer to people and sometimes to animals, but not to things Estar (to be) Span sh has two verbs that are equivalent to English to be. Begin with the conjugation of the verb estar. yoestoy Tam nosotros estamos — we are tiestas you are vosotros estais you are élesta eis ellos estan they are cllaesté she is ellas estan they are Ud.esté you are Uds. estan you are Practice the conjugations of the verb aloud, Notice that él, ella, and Ud. have the same form of the verb (the third-person singular). Notice also that ellos, ellas, and Uds. have the same form of the verb (the third-person plural) Estar is used to express four basic concepts: location, health, changing mood or condition, and personal opinion in terms of taste or appearance. Location Estar is used to describe where something or someone is physically located. Yo estoy en la clase. Tam in the class. Nosotros estamos en el carro. We are in the car: El restaurante esté en la ciudad. ‘The restaurant is in the city, Ellas estén en el bao They are in the bathroom. ¢Ests tii en el hospital? Are you in the hospital? The verb, which carries the action of the phrase, is the essential element of the Spanish sentence or question because of the amount of information it contains. Verb Definitions The infinitive is the unconjugated form of the verb. For example, to be is an infinitive in English. The conjugations are the forms of the verb that belong to a particular pronoun or noun subject. am and he is are examples of conjuga- tions of the infinitive to be.16 Elements of a Sentence * Health Yo estoy bien, gracias. Tam fine, thanks. Ella esta enferma. She is sick. Los doctores estén enfermos. The doctors are sick. gCémo estan Uds. How are you? Estamos bien. We are well. * Changing Mood or Condition La muchacha esti contenta. ‘The girl is happy. Estoy feliz. am happy. Los hombres estin cansados. The men are tired. Estamos alegres We are happy. gEstas enojado? Are you angry? g Often the pronouns yo, ti, and nosotros are omitted. This is possible because estoy can only mean / am, estas means you are whether ti is included or not, and estamos carries the meaning we are. * Personal opinion in terms of taste or appearance When estar is used with food, the English equivalent is taste or tastes When estar is used with appearance, the English equivalent is look or looks. La comida esta buena. The meal is (tastes) good. El pescado esta delicioso. The fish is (tastes) delicious. La sopa esta sabrosa. The soup is (tastes) delicious. Ella est hermosa hoy. She is (looks) pretty today. El esta guapo. He is (looks) handsome. g A Word About Word Order ‘As you begin learning the basic structure of the Spanish language, you will dis- cover that the word order of English and Spanish is essentially the same for the material covered in Part |, which includes the basic elements of a sentenceEstar, Ser, and Subject Pronouns 17 a Key Vocabulary These words will help enhance your ability to communicate. As you lear them, remember to practice them aloud. Interrogative Words geémo? how? gdénde? where? aquién? — who? Adverbs of Location aqui, acd here alli, all there Adjectives alegre happy (merry) enojado angry bonito pretty feliz happy bueno good guapo beautiful, handsome cansado tired hermoso _ beautiful, handsome contento happy (contented) —_lindo pretty delicioso — delicious sabroso delicious enfermo si NOTE: Guapo describes people only; bonito, hermoso, and lindo are used to describe both people and things. o Exercise 2.1 Complete the following sentences with the correct form of estar. Pay attention to the meaning of each sentence. Then indicate whether the sentence expresses health, lo- cation, changing mood, or changing condition. EXAMPLES Nosotros €St@MOS en Ia clase. (__location _) La profesora €St4 enferma. (_health__) 1, Daniel _____ muy cansado hoy. (___) 2. El teléfono y el libro en la mesa. ( —_) 3. La mujer bien; el hombre enfermo. (__________)18 Elements of a Sentence 4, ¢Cémo —_____—Uds.?. (__ 5. gDonde ellos? (__ 6. ¢Dénde ____ el bafio, por favor? (_____) 7. Elnifio _____ enojado y la nifia_____ triste. (—________) 8. Los muchachos __________alegres. (___________) 9. Yo_________contento. (______) 10. ¢Quién _______ aqui? (_______) Xp Exercise 2.2 Translate the following sentences into Spanish 1, Lam in the yellow house. Where are you? 2. The red blouses are in the big store. 3. The white flower is in the window. 4. We are in the train. 5. How are you? | am fine, thanks. 6. We are tired, and we are happy. Ser (to be) The Spanish verb ser is also equivalent to English to be In English, there is a single verb that means to be, We say, for example: The dog is here. (location) The dog is brown. (description)Estar, Ser, and Subject Pronouns 19 The verb is the same in both cases. But in Spanish, there is a difference, and you have to choose the correct verb. yosoy Tam tieres you are éles he is ellos ellaes — sheis ellas Ud.es — youare Uds nosotros somos vosotros sois son son son we are you are they are they are you are Ser is used to express seven basic concepts: description, profession, point of origin, identification, material, possession or ownership, and where an event takes place. + Description La casa es roja. El libro es azul Los carros son viejos. Somos simpiticos. ¢Es la flor amarilla? Profession Yo soy estudiante. Eles arquitecto. Ellas son maestras excelentes. Somos doctores. Roberto es abogado, Eres ti ingeniero? The house is red. The book is blue. The cars are old. We are nice. Is the flower yellow? Tama student. He is an architect. They are excellent teachers. We are doctors. Robert is a lawyer Are you an engineer Spanish does not translate a/an when stating an unmodified profession. Unmodified Modified José es estudiante. Point of origin De here means from _De donde es Ud.? qDe donde son Uds.? Yo soy de Nueva York. gDe donde es ella? Somos de Italia. Ellos son de los Estados Unidos. José es un estudiante fantastico, Where are you from? (sing.) Where are you from? (pl.) Tam from New York. Where is she from? We are from Italy. They are from the United States20 Elements of a Sentence El vino es de Portugal La cerveza es de México. El café es de Brazil. The wine is from Portugal. The beer is from Mexico. The coffee is from Brazil. In common English usage, we often end a sentence with a preposition, for example, Where are you from? This never occurs in Spanish; the preposition cannot ever end a sentence, so the preposition, in this case de, is placed in front of the interrogative word dénde. Identification Identification specifies characteristics such as relationship, nationality, Somos amigos. José y Eduardo son hermanos Pablo es espafiol Eres tt cuban Ella es catéli Material De here means oj La mesa es de madera. La bolsa es de plistico. Los zapatos son de cuero. Las ventanas son de vidrio. La casa es de piedra. Possession or ownership De here means oj La mufieca es de la nifia. Los amigos son de Maria. La idea es de Pedro. El barco es del hombre rico. Los perros son del muchacho: We are friends. Joe and Ed are brothers Paul is Spanish. Are you Cuban? She is Catholic. The table is of wood. The bag is of plastic. The shoes are of leather: The windows are of glass. The house is of stone. Its the child's doll. (The doll is of the child.) They are Maria’s friends. (The friends are of Maria.) The idea is Pedro's. (The idea is of Pedro.) The boat belongs to the rich man (The boat is of the rich man.) The dogs belong to the boy (The dogs are of the boy.)Estar, Ser, and Subject Pronouns 21 Los gatos son del nifio. The cats belong to the child. (The cats are of the child.) The car belongs to the friends. (The car is of the friends.) El carro es de los amigos. Nore: The contraction: de + el (of + the) = del. There are only two contractions in the Spanish language; del is one of them. Use de (En- glish of) to express possession or ownership. When de (English of) is followed by the masculine el (English the), the words contract to del, meaning of the. ‘A Word About Possessives B You can see that the translations above are not exact. There is no apostrophe in Spanish, so when you think of Peter's car, for example, the Spanish struc- ture is el carro de Pedro (the car of Peter). Make sure you understand this con- cept and use whichever English translation seems clearest to you, * Where an event takes place La fiesta es en la casa de José. The party is (takes place) in Joe’s house. El concierto es en el club. The concert is (takes place) in the club. La protesta es en la capital. The protest is (takes place) in the capital. The equivalent English translation is take or takes place The party takes place at Joe’s house. The concert takes place at the club. The protest takes place in the capital. & Exercise 2.3 Complete the following sentences with the appropriate form of ser in each blank. Indicate whether the sentence expresses description, profession, point of origin, iden- tification, material, or possession in parentheses. example El hombre _@S_ guapo. La mujer _@S__guapa también. (description _) 1. El café _________ de Colombia. (.22 Elements of a Sentence 2. Ellos doctores. Ella profesora ( 3. gDe dénde _____ los turistas? (__) 4. Los hermanos de Pablo _____simpaticos. ( 5. El hotel viejo __________ excelente. ( 6. Nosotros _______ amigos de Ratil. (_______) 7. Los zapatos __________ de cuero, (_____) 8. La mujer y el hombre de Ecuador. ( —_—) 9. Yo___ de Puerto Rico. ¢De dénde ___ ud.? ( 10. El apartamento ________ de los estudiantes jévenes. ( Wg td una estudiante maravillosa? (. —__—_—_3 12. Los tomates ______ verdes y rojos. (_______) 13. gQuién ___e presidente de los Estados Unidos? ( Exercise 2.4 A. Complete the following sentences with the appropriate form of ser. Indicate the reason for your choice in parentheses. 1. Helena ___ de Colombia. ( 2. El hermano de ella ______catdlico, (___) 3. Ellos ____profesores excelentes. (____) 4. Los carros ________grises. (______) 5. Nosotros _________ estudiantes, (____) Complete the following sentences with the appropriate form of estar. Indicate the reason for your choice in parentheses. 4. San Francisco ______ en California, (____)Estar, Ser, and Subject Pronouns 23 2. gCémo ____ Ud.? Yo _______ bien (—__________) 3. El profesor ___________enfermo, (______) 4. Nosotros ______ en la clase. (____________) 5. gt triste? (_____ +) 6. Los perros ___________ en el carro, (________) C. Complete the following sentences with the appropriate form of either ser or estar. Indicate the reason for each choice in parentheses. exametes Yo SOY espafol. (__identification fllos _St4n_ aqui, (location 1, José y Juan ______ enfermos. (___) 2. Ta —____abogado, (___) 3. Laleccién ______ facil, (_____) 4. Los estudiantes ____________ en la ciudad. (____________) 5. gCémo ____Uds.? Nosotros ________ bien, gracias, (____ 6. Ellas _________iinteligentes. (____) 7. gDénde ____ los doctores? ( 8. El profesor _________contento, (___) 9. Los espejos en el bafio________ grandes, (_____) 10. La mesa, las sillas blancas y la lampara en la casa, pero lacasa_________ pequefia, (_________, ) 14, La amiga de Sara _______ enferma y Sara ____ a 12. Las puertas dela casa________fuertes. (___) 13. Los tomates _____________ en la tienda. Los tomates verdes de California; los tomates rojos de Guatemala, (___, ________,24 Elements of a Sentence 14. ¢De dénde —__ el vino blanco? (___) 15. Los muchachos y las muchachas _________ en el tren. Ellos ___________contentos porque ______ amigos —————$——, >, 16. ¢Quién _____ ene bafio? (____) 17, gDénde __________ la familia de Fernando? (. 18. Nosotros ___________ contentos porque nosotros estudiantes excelentes. (______, 19. ¢_________ Ud. de Suramérica? Ellos de Espafia, (—____, _____m__) 20. Julia _______ alegre porque la fiesta fantastica, (___-______, Exercise 2.5 Answer the following questions aloud using the appropriate form of ser or estar. 1. gCémo estas? . gDénde esta la hermana de Teresa? eDe dénde es Ud.? Quién esta en el carro caro? 2 3 4 5. gDénde es el concierto? 6. cEsta Ud. alegre? 7. gs facil la leccién? 8. Dénde estan las flores hermosas? zDe dénde son? 9. cEs grande el apartamento de Tomas? 10. Estas cansado? 11. cEstan los periddicos en la casa de Alicia? 12. eDénde esta el restaurante barato de la ciudad? 13. g£s Ud. de Europa? 14. Eres estudiante 0 profesor?Estar, Ser, and Subject Pronouns 25 & Exercise 2.6 Complete the following letter with the appropriate form of ser or estar. Queridos amigos, ecémo (1.) Uds.? Yo (2.) aqui en Madrid. La ciudad __________ (3.) hermosa. El museo del Prado (4.) en el centro de la ciudad y____ 6.) muy interesante. La gente (6.) simpatica y la comida (7,) deliciosa, Hasta luego. Reading Comprehension La casa Mi casa es vieja y grande, con muchas ventanas. Las cortinas en toda la casa son gruesas. Las paredes del interior de la casa son blancas; el exterior es gris. El patio es bonito, con flores todavia. Un espejo antiguo y una mesa de madera fina estan en el vestibulo. El comedor es sencillo, con una mesa y seis sillas; la alfombra es roja y azul marino. La cocina es amplia, con paredes amarillas y gabinetes blancos. La nevera es bastante grande, y la estufa y el horno estan limpios. Dos sillones c6modos y un piano estén en la sala. Mi aleoba con un bafio privado es azul y blanca. Mis libros, mis cuademos, mis lipices y boligrafos, mi coleccién de discos compactos, y mis videos estén en el estudio. Hoy es un dia hermoso Nombres (Nouns) la aleoba the bedroom el gabinete the cabinet laalfombra the rug el horno the oven el boligrafo the ballpoint pen el lapiz the pencil la cocina the kitchen Ja madera the wood lacoleccién the collection lanevera the refrigerator elcomedor _ the dining room la pared the wall la cortina the curtain el patio the yard elcuaderno _ the notebook la sala the living room elespejo the mirror el sillon the easy chair elestudio the study elvestibulo the entryway la estufa the stove el video the video26 Elements of a Sentence Adjetivos (Adjectives) amplio ample limpio clean antigno old mi, mis my (sing,, pl.) azul marino navy blue privado private cémodo comfortable sencillo simple fino ‘fine, delicate todo all grueso thick Adverbios (Adverbs) bastante enough todavia still Preguntas (Questions) After you have read the selection, answer the following questions in Spanish. 1 2 3 4 gs nueva la casa? ds bonito el dia? gs grande la cocina? eDénde esta el piano?